There is no shortage of fun places to take kids to in Denver. A plethora of cultural attractions awaits in Downtown Denver, everything from the Denver Zoo to the Denver Art Museum, to the Children’s Museum, the Denver Mint, and more. If cultural or educational places aren’t what you are going for, there is always Elitch Gardens amusement park in Denver. But, what if you are looking for a fun outing around Denver for children that has rides and games, but is also indoors?
Denver’s Indoor Amusement Park Funtastic Fun
Funtastic Fun Interior Picture
Funtastic Fun is an indoor kids amusement park. Located on Broadway just south of Denver in Englewood, Funtastic Fun provides a place for kids to run around, act crazy, and ride on some carnival rides.
Good parenting skills require being constantly on the lookout for new, fun places to take your children. After all, the usual stuff runs out pretty quickly and kids get bored fast these days.
A drive up South Broadway on the way into downtown might have parents noticing an indoor carnival looking place on the east side of Broadway. Curiousity about Funtastic Fun might lead to a new place to take kids to play inside.
Funtastic Fun is located in a large building with big windows designed both to let in light, and to show off the rides and attractions inside to passing families driving by. Visible from the road are a Ferris wheel and a train, suggesting great laughs and fun times inside. Yet, Funtastic Fun also looks exactly like that kind of place that seems good from the outside, but inside might be a little old and busted. Fortunately, that is not the case here.
This Denver indoor amusement park consists of a handful of carnival rides including the Ferris Wheel and train, as well as a “Whip It” ride, and a teacup ride reminiscent of the teacup rides at amusement parks like Disneyland, Disneyworld, and even local Denver amusement park, Six Flags Elitch Gardens.
These four rides make up the sum of the mechanical rides with belt buckles and operators, but there is more. A giant ball pit (larger than any you’ve seen at Chuck E Cheese), two jumpy castles, a log roll type ride, and even a free range riding area for those cars that you power by twisting the handles back and forth. A big side-by-side double slide at the end of a long wiggly bridge also brings smiles to the faces of most kids.
There is also a black light room and an odd but fun room where you stand against a green wall and wait for a flash which then makes an eerie illuminated shadow on the wall where you were standing.
Rounding out the play arena is a collection of video games, and skill games like Skeeball. These games are not included in the admission price and require the separate purchase of tokens in order to play.
A nice family friendly policy prohibits teenagers and adults without small children which prevents packs of teens “hanging out” and potentially hogging or blocking off other things your kids might want to try.
How Much Does Funtastic Fun Cost
TeaCup Ride Denver's Funtastic Fun
Funtastic Fun charges $11.95 for admission to pretty much all kids, even babies and toddlers. The exception is “babies on their backs.” In other words, if you have a baby under a year old, make sure you bring the stroller that has them laying there in order to get them in free, otherwise, they have to pay too.
The price for adults is $2.95 per adult, so a Mom and a Dad will both pay to get in.
All of the rides except for the Whip It allow adults to ride too, so you can ride the Ferris Wheel with your toddler or other young son or daughter. There didn’t seem to be a weight limit, and we rode with two adults and two kids in one car, but it was really tight. The cars aren’t very big and two adults might be better off splitting up into two cars. The same was true of the train.
Is Funtastic Fun worth it?
Whether or not Funtastic Fun is worth it for your family depends on a few factors. First, there are only four rides, so if you just want to ride rides all day, this might not be the place for you. Second, it can get crowded, especially on weekends and holidays although there are never long lines. Third, this is really a place for children. Even with the video games, teens are likely to get bored fast.
Four kids plus Mom and Dad adds up to $53.70, which is WAY cheaper than Elitches. You do get unlimited rides, and playing on the other things is also free, but video games and Skee-ball are extra.
In the end, Funtastic Fun is a family friendly, fun place to take kids in Denver. It is also a rare treat of an indoor venue where loud, rambunctious, and excited kids are more than welcomed, which can be great after a few days of cold and snow have ratcheted up the cabin fever in the little ones.
The Denver Public Library Downtown Branch is located on the Southeast edge of the main downtown Denver area next to the Denver Art Museum and Civic Center Park with both the Colorado State Capitol Building, and the Denver City and County Buildings near by. Branch libraries are located through out the city.
The library building itself is something of an interesting architectural piece. On one hand, the building is composed of perfectly normal building shapes and colors, just like you would draw in a picture, and that is its genius. Of course, real buildings typically don’t look like the ones drawn on paper, but this one does. It is pastel colored with each segment of the building forming a perfectly drawn shape, cylinders, rectangles, and squares.
Inside, the Denver Public Library book collection sprawls across four floors. The library Children’s section is on the first floor, as is the Reference Section, and the popular fiction and multimedia section. The top three floors contain the bulk of the library’s books and are categories in the traditional Dewey Decimal System manner.
The library has numerous computer workstations with public Internet access. This can make finding a free one can be difficult despite time limits placed on consecutive usage, as many people camp out for as long as they are allowed online. For that reason, it is advisable to search the library’s card catalog online prior to visiting if you are looking for something specific. Otherwise, a handful of computers scattered throughout the library are marked as being either Card Catalog Only, or No Internet Access. These stations are generally not occupied.
Residents of Denver can use the online catalog to not only search for materials, but also to place books, DVDs, and CDs on hold. The great thing about the system is that in addition to reserving the materials, the user may also choose where to pick up the materials, meaning that there is no need to drive all over town to a specific library to get the book you want. Simply place a hold on the book and select your nearest Denver Library Branch to pick it up.
Denver Public Library Hours
The main downtown branch of the library is open every day, although only for a half a day on Sundays.
However, all local branch library locations are closed on Sunday. Additionally, falling tax revenues have caused Denver and the library system to endure major budget cuts. Unfortunately one money saving method being used is closing branches for additional days. The 2010 Library Schedule of hours has most branches closed on Sundays and two other days each week, so check the Denver Library Hours prior to venturing out.
Whether traveling to Denver on business or pleasure, or just for the fun of a family vacation, if you fly into Colorado, you’ll pass through Denver International Airport. DIA, as it is known to everyone, sits far to the east of Downtown Denver. As such, the hotels at DIA are much better for catching an early morning flight out, or for crashing after a late flight into Denver, than they are for sightseeing around Denver. Likewise, travelers on business looking forward to meetings in downtown or at the Denver Tech Center will likely be better served by staying at one of Denver’s top hotels in those areas.
If your plan is to see some of the fun Denver attractions the city has to offer, consider staying closer to downtown or whatever area your Colorado travels or sightseeing trips will be concentrated in.
For those looking for good Denver Airport hotels, there are now plenty of nationally recognized brand name hotels and motels near Denver International Airport. If you visited Colorado and tried to stay near the airport several years ago, rest assured that while the airport itself is still more or less out in the middle of nowhere, it is no longer isolated from Denver lodging.
DIA is east of the city. Lodging in northern Denver is another option for experienced travelers.
Lodging Denver International Airport DIA
Fortunately, travelers and locals alike, have plenty of lodging choices at the Denver airport. Here is a listing of some of the DIA hotels near the airport.
- Quality Inn & Suites
- Staybridge Suites Denver Airport
- La Quinta Inn Denver International Airport / DIA
- Comfort Suites DIA
- Embassy Suites at Denver International Airport
- Microtel Inn DIA
- Residence Inn by Marriott
- Denver International Hotel
- Days Inn & Suites
- Ramada Inn and Suites Denver International Airport
- Courtyard by Marriott Denver Airport
- Fairfield Inn By Marriott Denver Airport
- Hampton Inn Denver-International Airport
- Holiday Inn Express & Suites Denver Airport
- Homewood Suites by Hilton Denver International Airport
- Hyatt Place Denver Airport
Most of the Denver airport hotels are pretty similar with standard business accommodations being the norm. If you are looking for high-end hotels in Denver or boutique hotels, then downtown or other areas of Denver are your best bet. Luxury Denver hotels and Denver resorts are not what the hotels out by the airport are all about.
Basic information about Denver
With that being the case, the best hotel in Denver near the airport for most travelers will be whichever one offers the lowest price room. Or, if going for the cheapest room rate isn’t for you, stay at one of the chain hotels that you have frequent flier miles or other traveler rewards programs with. Hilton Honors rewards and Marriott Rewards are just two of the major hotel rewards program available from major hotels nationwide.
Shopping Downtown at the Pavilions
On the eastern end of the 16th Street Mall is the Denver Pavilions, an outdoor mall within the mall. The Pavilions has numerous shopping opportunities including a two-story Barnes & Noble, Gap, Banana Republic, Nike Town, Bath & Body Works, and a Victoria’s Secret store. The Pavilions also houses smaller local stores and boutiques ranging from nail salons to tobacco shops.
Downtown Denver Pavilions Restaurants
Pavilions restaurants offers a variety of dining eateries ranging from restaurant chains to local favorites. Maggiano’s Little Italy is a popular family style Italian restaurant. That means that you should order the half-order unless you plan to share, because the portion are huge. On weekend evenings, the wait can be long, so grab a reservation earlier in the week, or show up before 6:00 P.M. to avoid a long wait in the bar.
There is also the Hard Rock Cafe Denver, Rocky Mountain Chocolate Factory, and local lunch favorite, Corner Bakery Cafe which serves sandwiches, hot Panini’s, soups, and bakery creations.
Denver Pavilions Nightlife in Downtown Denver
When it’s time to have some fun in Downtown Denver, the Pavilions has plenty of options for daytime fun as well as hot spots for those looking for fun nightlife. Jazz @ Jack’s offers, as you might guess, live Jazz music and drinks. Jack’s has live music 7 days a week, including Sundays. The house band, Dotsero, has been playing together for 18 years! The core members of the group are all University of Colorado (CU) alumni.
So, whether you flew in on Sunday for a business meeting, or are tourists in Denver with the family, or are locals out for the Denver’s nightlife downtown, you can always drop by Jack’s for some music.
If you are looking for something a little louder and flashier, consider Coyote Ugly Saloon, as franchised offshoot of the real Coyote Ugly bar in New York City made popular by the Coyote Ugly movie starring Piper Perabo and Maria Bello.
Look for the free weekly newspaper, Westword Magazine, in sidewalk displays and in the entryways of many shops and restaurants around the city. Many of Denver’s nightclubs, bars, and other hot spots run ads in the back of the paper. The ads in Westword often list bands that are playing all over town, including in the Pavilions, as well as any drink specials or special theme nights or parties. Ladies nights, in particular, can be very generous in downtown Denver.
Downtown Bowling at Lucky Strikes
If that weren’t enough, there is also bowling. That’s right, I said bowling.
Lucky Strike Lanes takes the stogy, smoke-filled, bowling alleys of suburbia and turns the idea on its head with a hip way to hang out with friends, enjoy music, and have a couple of cocktails. As one patron put it, how much more fun can you have than getting drunk and throwing stuff. (Perhaps this is why darts is so popular?) Flashy lighting, and cocktail waitresses round out the ambiance as this nightclub slash bowling alley combination in Downtown Denver.
Denver Pavilions Movie Theater
If you are looking for entertainment downtown that doesn’t involve food or drinks, the 14 screen multiplex at United Artists Theaters on the third floor of the Pavilions shows hit movies and fan favorites. The movie theater offers validated parking in the Pavilions parking garage for customers who buy a movie ticket. Take your parking ticket from the garage into the theatre with you to have it validated. Just look for the validation machine on the wall to the right of the doors (as you face the entrance/exit). Validation is only good for three hours. That time starts when you drive into the parking garage, not when your movie starts.
Denver Pavilions Location on 16th Street Mall
The Denver Pavilions is on the eastern end of the 16th Street Mall. If you are staying in a Denver hotel on the west end of town, or are finishing up seeing some of Denver’s tourist attractions, like the Denver Aquarium, don’t worry about getting a cab or driving your car. The free 16th Street shuttle will take you across downtown along the mall for free.
Parking downtown is at on street parking meters, or in the Pavilions parking garage.
